Victor's Pursuit of Serenity Chapter 26

What is a little troublesome is that the invasion of Redology into daily life has gone a little too far. For example, Redologists are also recognized as aestheticians, writers, historians, scholars, professors, patriots, and good husbands. Then, these normal identities are a little unclear. Others who consider themselves masters of something or other will feel a little embarrassed when they think of getting some credit. Redology, including Cao studies, Qin studies, and the "Lao studies" that are being established, is a summary of the philosophy of life and the key to the operation of the universe. It is no longer within the scope of the word "academic". It might as well create a new high-class family and give the word "study" to mediocre people like you and me to make a living.

On many issues that require professional knowledge to determine right from wrong, we accept the opinions of mainstream scholars. Ancient philosophers said that the earth is the center, and we accept this opinion. Today's scientists say that the earth is just a wanderer in space, and we also accept this opinion. There is nothing wrong with this. The problem lies in what kind of things become mainstream or close to mainstream in a society. All opinions have the right to be expressed, but which opinion prevails makes a major difference. For example, in the 21st century, there are still people who claim that the code of the universe is written in literary works. There is nothing wrong with it, and it is very interesting. But if quite a lot of people agree with this opinion, it will be a bit strange.

The protagonist of Don Quixote firmly believes that the world in the knight novel is more real. If what he encounters does not match the description in the novel, he would rather not believe his eyes. Mr. Quixote is a reader of the novel, but he is also a character in the novel, and we are readers of Don Quixote. If someone confuses all these, it will definitely create considerable confusion. Among the people I have come into contact with, there are many more who believe that Dream of the Red Chamber is not a simple novel than you can imagine. There are too many people who think that this novel is actually a Tui Bei Tu, a history book, and even transcends records to become something real that is recorded. These most horrifying discussions come from the mouths of various well-educated, well-dressed and successful people. It is hard not to think: our education is really a failure.

The essence of modern education, in addition to imparting knowledge, is to train students to master a set of basic procedures to distinguish between truth and falsehood. For most issues outside of personal experience, we can only listen to others, but by observing the way they establish their claims, we can determine our own position. We don't know what is hidden in the center of the earth, but if someone says, "I am a philanthropist, so when I say the center of the earth is a big bird's nest, you'd better believe me," we should not agree with him because his method is problematic.

Common sense has a different meaning from the knowledge that is commonly referred to. Common sense is not only a set of practical knowledge, but also represents a kind of daily rationality. It is entirely possible that a person is well-read but extremely lacks common sense. That is because he lacks a verification procedure, which determines who is a big eater and who is a gourmet.